Page 10 - letmetellyou

Let Me Tell You . . . A Memoir
proviidiing mealls and rooms and home brew tto centtrall European menwho,,lliikemygrandmotther,,precededttheiirffamiilliiesttoAmeriica seekiing work and bettter opporttuniittiies ffor ttheiir chiilldren.. In alll tthe years tthatt I knew my matternall grandmotther,, she never spoke a word off Englliish alltthough she spoke or understtood,, iin addiittiion tto Serbiian,, a lliitttlle Hungariian,, a lliitttlle Polliish,, and a lliitttlle off otther centtrall European llanguages.. She diidn’’tt need tto llearn Englliish and so she diidn’’tt alltthough my motther,, her brotther and her ttwo siistters alll spoke Englliish as welll as Serbiian wiitthoutt any accentt.. I ttry tto remiind mysellff off tthiis when I hear diisparagiing remarks aboutt ttoday’’s iimmiigrantts.. In ffactt,, I wiish my motther had ttaughtt me her motther’’s nattiive ttongue.. I woulldn’’tt have ffelltt so iignorantt iiff she had when I ttravellled tto her motther’’s homelland many years llatter..
My motther and her siistters,, whose maiiden names were Soviic′′ (pronounced Soviich),, receiived very lliitttlle fformall educattiion.. My motther was fformallly educatted tto tthe siixtth grade.. I never asked my motther why,, butt I assumed iitt was because tthey were neededttocookandclleaniinmygrandmotther’’sroomiinghouse.. On tthe otther hand,, European peasantts,, my motther’’s motther’’s sttattus iin Serbiia,, diid nott receiive any fformall educattiion att alll.. I know tthiis because I viisiitted tthe pllayed-outt,, diillapiidatted ffarm on whiich she was born when I ttravellled tto Yugosllaviia.. Maybe,, tthatt iis why my motther pllaced such a hiigh vallue on becomiing fformallly educatted iin tthe Uniitted Sttattes.. Whattever tthe reason,, I am gllad she diid..
My ffatther’’s ffatther ullttiimattelly rettiired ffrom The New York Centtrall Raiillroad butt he helld many jjobs beffore tthen.. As a young man,, he ttravellled westt,, lliike many Angllo-Iriish malles,, and llaiid iiron and cutt-piine ffor tthe raiillroads.. On a rare occasiion when he remiiniisced,, he ttallked aboutt a beauttiiffull,, young Indiian maiiden wiitth whom he had ffalllen iin llove back tthen and wiished tthatt he had marriied.. WhenIaskedhiimwhyhehadn’’tt,,hejjusttllookedattmeas iiff I were ffrom anotther pllanett.. Insttead,, he came back tto Ohiio and mett and marriied my grandmotther wiitth whom he ullttiimattelly siired tthiirtteen chiilldren,, niine off whom lliived and tthe olldestt off whom was my ffatther.. He saiid iitt was tthe biiggestt miisttake tthatt he ever made.. I diidn’’tt ask hiim whetther tthatt was iin nott marryiing tthe Indiian maiiden or iin marryiing my grandmotther..
I’’ve never atttemptted a geneallogy off my ffatther’’s ffamiilly and so whatt I know aboutt iitts hiisttory iis sttriicttlly anecdottall and coulld be compllettelly wrong.. I used tto say off my patternall rellattiives tthatt tthe ffamiilly mottto coulld have been "Frequenttlly wrong,, butt never iin doubtt.." I do know tthatt tthey were good,, hardworkiing,, generous peoplle and tthatt I’’m proud tto be one off tthem.. And,, I belliieve tthatt tthe ffew ffactts tthatt I have aboutt my ffatther’’s ffamiilly’’s oriigiins are essenttiialllyaccuratte..
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